Burning Man Build Research Hub

This document is a living, comprehensive index of Burning Man build guides and references. We will iterate until it contains thousands of links across all build domains.

Open Camping at Burning Man
- How to open camp
- Site selection (noise, wind, egress, proximity to services)
Camp Layouts and Logistics
- Small/medium/large camp layouts
- Kitchens & storage
- Transport & trailers
- Box trucks and RV hardening
- Build week sequencing & roles
Permitting and Placement
- Placed Camp Questionnaire (PCQ) timeline
- Work Access Pass (WAP) & Early Arrival planning
- Art registration and FAST coordination
- Mutant Vehicle (DMV) applications and inspections
- Fuel storage approvals and secondary containment
- Fire safety agreements and perimeter plans
Black Rock City
- Maps of BRC
- Data about BRC
- Civil Engineering and the Playa
- Civic Culture Interfacing with Engineering
- Extra: Official Guides & Reference PDFs
- Playa Restoration & Environmental Engineering
- Policy, Permitting & Macro-Ops (Civil Context)
- Signage, Streetscapes & Civic Fixtures
- Airport and Airfield
- Other Playa Infrastructure
Gate, Traffic and Exodus
- Arrival staging and tarp/strapping rules
- On-playa flagging, marking and safety lanes
- Vehicle/movement rules (no driving, staging, exodus prep)
- Exodus strategies, load sequencing and fuel planning
- Rain/mud contingencies and shelter-in-place
Weather and Environmental
- Wind design gust factoring and tie-down checks
- Dust air-quality responses and masks
- Rain/mud hardening and floor protection
- Lightning protocols and mast grounding
- Weather safety and evacuations
Shade Structures
- Monkey Hut (PVC + shade cloth)
- Aluminet/tarp wings
- Carport hardening
- Tensegrity/wing structures
- Geodesic/Playa Dome shade
- Shade sails (posts, turnbuckles)
- Stretch tents and mast rigs
Hexayurts and Alternative Shelters
- Standard 8’ hexayurt
- Standard 10’ hexayurt
- 12–16’ variants
- Tape schedules, doors, AC
- Floors and anchors
- Transport (hinged/folding panels)
Domes and Tents
- Geodesic domes (math/tools)
- ShiftPod & clones: mods
- Canvas tent playa-proofing
- Vestibules and dust lobbies
- Covers/patterns and sewing
Cooling and Swamp Coolers
- 5-gallon bucket coolers
- Box-fan/pad coolers
- Hypercoolers/mini-splits
- Evap theory and sizing
- Iced-water coolers (heater core)
- DC rooftop units (12/24 V)
- Solar mini-splits feasibility
Anchoring and Rigging
- Rebar, lag bolts, screw anchors
- Guying, straps, wind loads
- Extraction tools and techniques
Whiteouts and Rapid Takedown
- Rapid takedown checklists
- Shelter-in-place protocols
Dust Mitigation
- Door seals & vestibules
- Equipment enclosures & filters
- Skin/eye care & alkali neutralization (vinegar rinse)
- Post-playa cleanup and care
Solar and Power
- Portable solar arrays
- Batteries (AGM/LiFePO₄)
- Battery boxes & quiet power banks
- MPPT/inverters
- Camp microgrids & distro
- Generators & quiet boxes
- Solar racking (EMT/tripods)
- Solar layouts and angles on the playa
- EVs & camp charging strategies (cars/scooters)
- Electrical safety (GFCI, neutral bonding, cord ratings, ground-fault response)
- Solar Ovens
Lighting and Power Distribution
- 12/24 V low-voltage distro
- Connectors & standards
- Distro boxes (Edison, L5-20, PowerCON)
- Cable routing and trip-hazard mitigation
- Light masts and area lighting
- Perimeter lighting & guyline markers (EL/LED)
Communications and Networking
- GMRS/ham radios
- Mesh/LoRa, camp Wi-Fi
- Starlink best practices
- Caching and captive portals
- DIY radio stations on playa (how to broadcast)
- Tower placement, guying and night marking
- RF safety and interference mitigation
- Radio etiquette & incident call formats
- Camp IT runbook, offline maps and backups
Water Systems
- Water plan (storage, transport, rationing; container selection)
- Showers & pumps
- Sinks & plumbing
- Closed-loop showers (filtering)
Camp Kitchens & Cooking Systems
- Rocket stoves & propane
- Solar ovens
- Grills, planchas & large-format cookery
- Food permits and inspections
- Handwash stations & NSF practices
Refrigeration and Ice
- Solar chest freezers
- Kegerators & cold-chain
- Coolers/ice strategy & food safety
- 12 V DC coolers/freezers for food
Food (Menus, Meal Styles & Recipes)
- Make-ahead & vacuum-sealed freezer meals (boil-in-bag/sous-vide reheat)
- One-pot & skillet meals (minimal cleanup)
- No-cook & cold-prep meals
- Breakfasts (oats, egg bakes, burritos, yogurt kits)
- Handhelds (wraps, sandwiches, rice balls)
- Hearty mains (stews, curries, chili, pasta bakes)
- Vegetarian & vegan protein (tofu/tempeh/legumes)
- Omnivore mains (pre-cooked meats, jerkies, tins)
- Gluten-free & allergy-aware options
- Snacks, trail mixes & quick calories
- Electrolyte & recovery drinks (DIY mixes)
- Desserts & morale treats
- Coffee, tea & alt-caffeine
- Menu planning & shopping lists
- Batch cooking for camps (service windows, food safety)
Bikes
- Lighting (EL/LED)
- Playa-proofing & maintenance
- E-bike considerations
- Charging infrastructure & etiquette
- E-bike hardening
- E-trike builds
- Cargo and Bike Trailers
- Bike security & night marking (racks, spoke lights)
Mutant Vehicles (Art Cars)
- DMV, safety, lighting
- Chassis & fabrication
- Flame effects on vehicles
- Pedal cars and small EVs
Sound and Camp Infrastructure
- Aiming, baffling, neighbor etiquette
- Quiet hours and compliance
- Sound policy & SPL management
- Generator etiquette & sound direction
Signage and Aesthetics
- EL/neon signage
- Camp branding/builds
- Wayfinding and mounting systems
Art Builds
- LED and addressable installs
- Flame effects: safety
- Interactivity & sensors
- Weatherproofing
- Transport and install logistics
- Early access writeups and reports/experiences
Theme Camp Builds
- General Theme Camp Setups
- Communal Spaces (bars, lounges, etc)
- Lighting, Signage & Camp Identity
Fuel and Compressed Gases
- Propane storage, cage, distance and anchoring
- Generator fueling SOP and fire watch
- Gasoline/diesel transport and storage
- Extinguishers selection, placement and checks
- Fire safety (cook areas, clearances, CO awareness)
Accessibility and Inclusion
- ADA routes and camp access
- Mobility device charging and storage
- Visual/audio wayfinding cues
- Low-sensory zones and quiet hours
- Kids & families (strollers, ear protection, routine)
- Service animals & accessibility etiquette
Clothing and Outfits
- Day heat wear (UPF, ventilation, sweat management)
- Night cold layering (base/mid/outer, hands/feet)
- Dust protection (goggles, masks/respirators)
- Footwear & foot care (blisters, powder, socks)
- Rain/mud gear & contingency outfits
- LED/EL wearables & visibility
- Costume storage, repairs & adhesives
- Laundry/refresh hacks (no-rinse, solar dry)
- Body paints, glitters & playa-safe choices
- MOOP-safe costuming (no shed/glitter)
Health & Safety
- Sun Safety
- Hydration Safety
- Harm reduction & overdose response
- Heat illness prevention and response
- PPE for build/teardown and dust protection
- Food allergies and cross-contamination SOP
- First aid kits & when to escalate to ESD/MED
- Mental health & low-sensory spaces
- Sleep hygiene (earplugs, masks, cooldown)
Security and Operations
- Camp perimeter and light-lines
- Asset tagging and loss prevention
- Radio callouts, SOPs and incident logs
- Night ops and lighting plans
- Incident reporting & documentation
Transport and Logistics
- Trailer loading, tie-downs and weight balance
- Tool inventories, spares and consumables
- Heavy-lift plans and crew safety
- Chain-of-custody for shared gear
Leave No Trace and Waste
- MOOP mapping strategy and line sweeps
- Waste streams (pack-it-out, recycling, sharps)
- Greywater (evap options, transport exceptions & plans)
- Emergency sanitation during closures (wag bags)
- Spill response kits and SOP
Documentation and Knowledge
- Build docs and as-builts
- Runbooks/SOPs and training
- Postmortems/lessons learned
- Budget and resource tracking
Camp Finance & Governance
- Dues, budgeting & fiscal sponsorship
- Purchasing, reimbursements & receipts
- Roles, code of conduct & conflict resolution
Volunteering & Civic Roles
- Rangers
- Gate/Perimeter/Exodus (GPE)
- ESD/MED
- Lamplighters
- Temple Guardians
- Earth Guardians
- Arctica
- DMV & Census/Playa Info
On-Playa Services & Wayfinding
- Service hubs & maps (Arctica, Ranger HQ, ESD outposts, Playa Info)
- Lost & found, comms & announcements
- Ice runs & queue etiquette
Culture & Principles
- Consent
- Gifting & decommodification (no commerce)
- Ten Principles
- Photography, filming & drones (consent & flight etiquette)
Off-Season Storage & Maintenance
- De-MOOPing & gear rehab
- Bins, labeling & inventories
- Battery storage & health checks
- Seasonal refresh & next-year planning
Camp Websites and Media
Trip Reports and Indie Archives
- Trip report websites
- Indie web and ancient burner websites
- First-timer vs veteran reports
- Build-week diaries and lessons learned
- Theme camp ops writeups (kitchens, power, water)
- Art build and Temple crew journals
- MV/DMV experiences and inspections
- Weather/storm years (mud/rain) and whiteout stories
- Exodus and logistics post-mortems
- LNT/MOOP sweep outcomes and camp grades
- Photo essays and documentaries
- Regionals comparisons and reports
- Indexed archives (ePlaya, Wayback)